Grand Master Ed Parker knew he would not be around forever. In an effort to give longevity and structure to his new AMERICAN KENPO SYSTEM Ed Parker set MINIMUM standards for obtaining each belt rank, Yellow Belt through 3rd Black Belt, which was the highest tested rank in American Kenpo.

In 1987 - Three years before his death on December 15, 1990 - Ed Parker published Volume V of INFINITE INSIGHTS INTO KENPO. In this book he set forth the minimum requirements for each belt. Those requirements would specify the exact techniques to be taught; the order in which they should be taught and the kata/s required. These were to be used as a guide for all future American Kenpo students.

Ed Parker had planned to put out a complete 40 Volume Video set - covering his new American Kenpo Kenpo System. Unfortunately for the American Kenpo community Ed Parker died before completing this project. His delay was cause by the fact he did not want to use any of his existing Black Belts in the videos - because he knew that after his death anyone he used in the videos would claim to be his successor. At his funeral Mrs Parker made it very clear that he had chosen none of his existing follower or Black Belts to take over or assume the leadership of the IKKA or "Ed Parker's Kenpo"! That control, and leadership would remain with the Parker family.

Ed Parker was farsighted in this. It has only been seven years since the Death of Ed Parker, and there are now at least 40 groups that have broken from Ed Parkers original American Kenpo and formed their own association with each claiming to teach Ed Parker's system. But there is only one Ed Parker System of Kenpo Karate, and that is the system Ed Parker left to his wife and family. All others are "AMERICAN KENPO", if, and only if they teach what Ed Parker established as American Kenpo.

It was for this reason Ed Parker left the generation of students to come a reference by which they could gage any instructor or association that claims to be teaching "AMERICAN KENPO".

The comparison is very simple - if an instructor is NOT teaching what Ed Parker set up as the MINIMUM requirements for each belt, he/she is not teaching "American Kenpo"

Now when an "INSTRUCTOR" or "Association" claims to be teaching American Kenpo all a student has to do is compare Ed Parkers "MINIMUM BELT REQUIREMENTS" against what is being taught by any instructor of association.

The comparisons is very simple: Yellow belt has 10 required self defense techniques; all belts Orange through 3rd degree Black Belt have 24 self Defense techniques.

There are no NEW self defense techniques past 2nd Brown.